By Rusty Pugh and Jody Brown
April 3, 2001

(AgapePress) - In an example of what can happen when determined citizens take a moral stand, concerned city officials and churches in one Alabama town have won a battle against pornography.

Movie Gallery, the nation's third-largest video retailer, owns almost 1,000 stores in 31 states, and offers hard-core pornography from back rooms in 200 of those stores. The rental chain also rents "soft-core" porn from the main floor area. But as AgapePress reported yesterday, when Movie Gallery announced plans to open a new store in Fayette, Alabama, the mayor, city council, and churches took immediate action.

Fayette Mayor Ray Nelson says city officials and church leaders had vowed to continuously picket the new store if it rented porn. Nelson contacted Movie Gallery and says the company, while not cooperative initially, has decided they will not stock any pornography in the Fayette store.

"It's just a matter of principle and convictions and [a willingness] to stand up," Nelson says, "and that's what our people have done here in our community. We said 'No,' and it was through the grass-roots efforts of our people ... and our pastors and churches that we've won this victory."

Nelson believes the victory could inspire other towns to take a stand and fight pornography.

"From Day 1, we've put forth an effort here to keep our city a morally decent city and not have any evil influence in our city with pornography," he says.

City officials were assisted by the American Family Association, which is spearheading a national boycott of Movie Gallery. AFA Director of Special Projects Randy Sharp calls the Fayette case a "wonderful example" of civic and church leaders pulling together for a common cause to make their community a better place to live. He believes Fayette was successful in its bid against Movie Gallery because the town understands the impact of pornography on crime.

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